Here you can find information on wood burning stoves, from starting the fire to what to do if something goes wrong.
These are only guidelines, double-check your owners manual for specific details.
Starting a Fire
The wood you use is best if it is dry, fully seasoned, and chopped. Hard woods, while more expensive, burn cleaner compared to softer woods. Softer woods tend to produce more creosote as well.
The wood you use should have a low resin and moisture content, less then 20%.
Pro Tip: If the wood is heavier (when it’s dry), it will burn longer.
Lighting a fire in a wood stove is a great experience, and certainly one a new wood stove owner deserves!
A few things to get you started:
- Hardwood logs (or whatever dry wood you have). The moisture content should be below 20%.
- Dry kindling. It doesn’t matter if the kindling is the same kind of wood as the logs, only that it’s small enough to light after a match strike.
- Matches. For a beginner fire starter, it is recommended to use either a lighter or long matches.
- Good airflow. You always need good airflow for a wood burning stove to operate properly. Opening a window slightly or turning on the blower on the back of your stove should help.
It may take some getting used to (especially if you’ve never started a fire before) but once you get the hang of it, it will be almost as easy as preparing your coffee maker in the morning.
Some helpful accessories of lighting fires are:
- A Hair Dryer: This helps blow the cold air out the pipe so smoke doesn’t enter the home when you try to start the fire. The more bends and elbows you have in the pipe, the harder it is to force the cold air out.
With the hair dryer, you want to point it between the firebox and the chimney. Do this for 3-5 minutes, this will force the cold air out the flue pipe getting rid of the cold plug in the chimney.
- Temperature Gauges: These gauges make sure you aren’t over-firing your wood stove (making the fire too hot), or burning the fire too cold. Burning the fire too cold can cause excess creosote buildup and would require more frequent cleaning.
- Fans: A wood stove fan doesn’t require electricity but will start spinning when the stove gets hot enough. This will provide heat to a broader area of your home.
You can prevent smoke from coming into your home using a few methods.
- Clean Your Chimney: Make sure your chimney is clean as creosote buildup can block smoke from escaping.
- Use Seasoned Dry Wood: Make sure you’re using seasoned, dry wood. Wet wood can produce a lot of smoke. It is recommended to get a moisture meter to test the wood’s moisture content.
- Close the Door When the Fire is Going: Every fire needs oxygen to burn, so opening the door a little when you start the fire is a good idea (if you don’t have a fresh air intake). However, once the fire is going, the door should be closed to prevent smoke from entering the home.
Emergency
Getting smoke in your home is a common problem, primarily with new stove owners, but it can also happen to veterans.
If you are getting smoke in your home, you can:
- Open windows to let the smoke out of the house. Optionally (but recommended) you can put some fans to blow the smoke out of the house.
- Try to put the fire out. Do not use water to put out the fire as this will create more smoke; instead, starve the fire by closing the door and not putting any more wood on.
To avoid overheating the stove, control the amount of firewood you put in, regulate the air intake, perform regular maintenance, and use control accessories.
Overheating a wood stove can cause internal component failure, warped metal, cracked glass, and can lead to a chimney fire.
If you are in this situation, try to cool the stove by:
1. Reducing the Airflow: Close the primary air vents and dampers partially. Do not close them 100% immediately, as this can cause a sudden buildup of gases that might lead to “backpuff”, or a small explosion of smoke. Reduce the air gradually.
2. Keep the Door Closed: Opening the door will provide a lot of oxygen to the fire, making it rage even more.
3. Do Not Use Water: Never throw water onto a hot wood stove. Doing so could crack the metal or glass in addition to creating a lot of steam.
4. Turn on the Blower: If your stove has a blower, turn it on to pull heat away from the stove and into the room.
If your wood stove has cracked glass, you should avoid using it until the glass is replaced, it is a common but serious issue.
Wood stoves glass is actually transparent ceramic designed to withstand extreme thermal expansion
Cracked glass isn’t just a cosmetic problem, it’s a safety and efficiency hazard. Cracks in the glass can allow carbon monoxide into your home, can contribute to uncontrolled airflow which lets in more air and can contribute to overfiring.
Cracked glass can even cause catastrophic failures. A small hairline crack can suddenly give way under heat; this will cause the glass to shatter completely, all while the fire is going.
The primary causes of cracking are physical impact, over-tightening hardware, thermal shock, over-firing, and sulphuric corrosion.
You cannot fix ceramic glass, you must replace it completely.
Call us if your wood or pellet stove glass needs replacing.
If embers are spilling out onto the floor, quick action needs to be taken to prevent a house fire.
Do not use a standard vacuum cleaner, you may have a vacuum cleaner fire if you do.
Metal Tools and Bucket: Using metal tools, you can place the hot embers into a metal bucket. You may want to wear heat-resistant gloves.
Baking Soda or Sand: For embers that are too small, or have already done the damage to the floor, you can use a generous amount of baking soda or sand to cover the embers and cut the supply of oxygen.
Damp Rag: With embers on surfaces like tiles and stone, you can use a damp rag to cool them off.
Fire Extinguisher: Only use a fire extinguisher if the floor or nearby rugs have actually caught fire. This is a last resort as it can cause a mess inside your home.
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